Feeding by breed and weight / Herding group
How much to feed a Border Collie
A neutered adult Border Collie at 55 lb needs about 1250 kcal a day, which is 3½ cups of a 369 kcal/cup food; at the 31 lb end of the breed's range it is 813 kcal, or 2¼ cups. That is the maintenance figure before treats, from the resting energy requirement formula and the Merck Veterinary Manual's factor of 1.6 for a neutered adult.
Border Collie feeding table by weight and life stage
Each row is a Border Collie at that weight. Columns are the Merck factors: a neutered adult (×1.6), an intact adult (×1.8) and a dog that is inactive or gains weight easily (×1.4). Cups assume 369 kcal per cup, the label figure for Purina Pro Plan Complete Essentials Shredded Blend Chicken & Rice (adult dry); change it to your bag's number on the sizer.
| Weight | RER | Neutered adult | Cups | Intact adult | Cups | Inactive / weight-prone | Cups |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 31 lb (14.1 kg) | 508 | 813 kcal | 2¼ | 915 kcal | 2½ | 712 kcal | 2 |
| 37 lb (16.8 kg) | 580 | 929 kcal | 2½ | 1045 kcal | 2¾ | 813 kcal | 2¼ |
| 43 lb (19.5 kg) | 650 | 1039 kcal | 2¾ | 1169 kcal | 3¼ | 910 kcal | 2½ |
| 49 lb (22.2 kg) | 717 | 1146 kcal | 3 | 1290 kcal | 3½ | 1003 kcal | 2¾ |
| 55 lb (24.9 kg) | 781 | 1250 kcal | 3½ | 1407 kcal | 3¾ | 1094 kcal | 3 |
RER = 70 × kg0.75; factors from the Merck Veterinary Manual. Calorie density from the Purina product page (3790 kcal/kg, 369 kcal per 8 oz cup, about 96 g). Checked 2026-10-20.
Why the number is lower than the bag says
Bag feeding guides are written for an active, intact adult and often run above the neutered-maintenance figure; for a 55 lb Border Collie the gap between the intact and neutered columns is 157 kcal a day, roughly 0.4 cups. A dog that is already carrying extra weight should start from the inactive column (1094 kcal at 55 lb) and be weighed every two weeks. Treats and chews count: a single dental chew can be 70–100 kcal, which adds up faster than it looks across a week.
Formulas get a healthy adult into the right range; body condition keeps it there. Ribs should be easy to feel under a thin layer of fat, and the dog should have a visible waist from above. If that is not the case after four weeks, adjust by about 10% and re-check — and ask your vet before changing a dog with a medical condition, a pregnant or nursing female, or a working dog in season.
Grams and meals
At 55 lb and 1250 kcal, 3½ cups is about 336 g a day of a 96 g/cup kibble — a kitchen scale is more repeatable than a scoop. Split into two meals for an adult. Puppies eat more per pound and more often: see the Border Collie puppy feeding chart.
How the Border Collie compares
Calories per pound fall as dogs get bigger, because RER scales with weight to the 0.75 power rather than linearly. A 55 lb Border Collie needs 23 kcal per pound; a 50 lb Bulldog needs 1164 kcal (23 per lb), a 60 lb English Springer Spaniel needs 1335 kcal (22 per lb), a 40 lb Brittany needs 985 kcal (25 per lb). The breed ranks 25 of 49 by weight on this site. Females of the breed top out around 42 lb, which is 1021 kcal a day neutered.
Adult weight from Wikipedia breed infobox/body, checked 2026-10-20. Figures are maintenance starting points for a healthy adult; they are not veterinary advice.